In January 1945 the SS issued orders from Berlin to Duesseldorf which resulted in the mass execution of German and overseas workers, as well as political dissidents and opposition party representatives, in the closing days of World War Two.

Following the orders from Duesseldorf Gestapo officers in Dortmund rounded
up more and more people and took them to the police cells 'Steinwache'
and the Gestapo cells in the 'Benninghoferstrasse.'
In addition, forced labourers (Dutch, Belgian, French, Polish, Yugoslavian
and Russian) from all over the local government district of Arnsberg were
also brought to Dortmund.

The executions commenced from the 7th March 1945 onwards as lorries systematically
carried groups of prisoners to the fields in the Rombergpark
and the Bittermark (suburbs of Dortmund)
and Gestapo officers shot them. This continued until 12th April 1945,
when American soldiers were already in the near vicinity.

Shortly after Easter, the 150-strong Gestapo execution commando fled via
Hemer and Iserlohn for destinations all over the world. 27 of them were
brought to trial in Dortmund in 1951 and
1952. 15 of the accused were found not guilty and no-one was found guilty
of murder. However, 12 were found guilty of being accomplices to murder
and received between 2 and 6 years in prison.

Around 300 people - the exact number has never been established - were killed in the days over Easter 1945.

One of the victims was the resistance member Martha Gillessen (born 30.11.1901),
who took in a Jewish woman. She was betrayed by a comrade and arrested
by the Gestapo on 08. February 1945, along with many other resistance
members. A street in the north of Dortmund
is named after Martha Gillessen.

[Excerpt from] Urich Sander, 1945: Mass murder in Romberg Park and the BittermarkThe Gestapo in Dortmund murders 300 persons from seven different nations -forced labourers, prisoners of war and resistance fighters -. End of Second World War, Dortmund lies in ruins: 65% of the metropolitan area, 93% of the city centre destroyed.